LOS ANGELES (CNS) - Two stores -- Costco and Home Depot -- adopted new policies today in response to the spread of the coronavirus.
Home Depot will close daily at 6 p.m., while opening hours will remain unchanged -- 5 a.m. in some stores, 6 a.m. in others. The adjusted hours will give stores the ability to staff appropriately and provide additional time to perform cleaning and restock shelves.
Home Depot is eliminating major spring promotions to avoid driving high levels of traffic to stores. It is also distributing thermometers to associates in stores and distribution centers and asking them to perform health checks before reporting to work.
Costco, meanwhile, announced that beginning Friday, members will only be allowed to bring one guest inside the store with them. Previously, Costco members could bring two guests per membership card, as well as their children. The new policy is designed to control the amount of people in the warehouse at one time.
“This temporary change is for your safety and the safety of our employees and other members, and to further assist with our social distancing efforts,” Costco said on its website.
Costco said that in recent weeks, it has altered its hours, increased its sanitization of high-touch surfaces like shopping cart handles and merchandise shelves, and placed limits on certain items. The warehouses also stopped offering food samples and are no longer accepting returns on certain merchandise.
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